I do not know what is going on in the DNA hobby lists at present but there is an outbreak on the lists of degenerating into people getting personal and offtopic. I know these are informal sites but I think some sort of basic norms of civilised debate and standards of respect even if people strongly disagree must apply. Everyone knows posters who they do not like but surely its best to avoid personal stuff. As some say attack the post not the poster. This sort of thing has existed on other sites for some time and rootsweb seems to be having a major outbreak but I see it creeping in here too. Its easy to respect those who you agree with but I feel that must be extended even if there is hot disagreement. I am also going to post something similar on rootsweb.

I agree with this completely, hence the defense of my colleague on the other thread, if that is to what you are referring.

NealI am not referring to any one specific instance. There have been at least three cases of this personality stuff recently on the site. Its even worse on rootsweb. None involves me but that kind of thing makes these sites less enjoyable. Attacking the post and not the poster is a good rule of thumb in my opinion.

“Attacking the post and not the poster is a good rule of thumb in my opinion.”

These outbreaks have been going on since I have been around. Mutual respect would help; however, I have no solutions. These are open very public forums and personalities sometimes clash in a disagreement.

I was wondering the same thing myself. In some ways I'm regarding the Rootsweb stuff with bemusement. In other ways I'm finding what appears to be a couple personal attacks not funny at all. And watching people appear to self-destruct is never pleasant.

I'm still new to this DNA game/hobby, but I think common courtesy goes along with every interest.

And there are a lot of experts in every field, unfortunately many experts think that they are the only expert worth listening to. Conversation is one thing. Sermonizing is another.

“Attacking the post and not the poster is a good rule of thumb in my opinion.”

I agree, but the posting attacks are only the symptom of a larger problem in ourselves. It is unfortunate to see the "leaders" of our society, our politicians, quickly degenerate into topic switching and attacking the other side, or some remnant of the opposition when their own arguments show the thinness or laziness of their logic.

One only hopes that we have enough critical thinking and analytical skills to discern the truths. The good news is most personal attacks come so quickly after during a failing argument that it isn't hard to figure out.

I've been waiting a long time to use Latin. The old Romans understood the fallacy of an "argumentum ad hominem".

I noticed I a couple low-level Switzerland matches a few years ago. I thought it might really mean something. I had pictured alpine people in the bronze age migrating north to the Isles. Perhaps in the bell-beaker time.

Maybe my thoughts about bell-beaker style coming from the alps at htis time is wrong? and was more wishful thinking , especially after The Archer of Amesbury's isotope test.

I read a little about Switzerland and when i read about the Franks I thought they were a good smoking gun for my swiss matches.

I had heard very little about Italy and R1B1B2 , but i was sure i heard L21 it was found there.

When I learned the Franks Armies conquered northern italy, I got curious about where they came from? I soon learned that they were a conferderation of tribes.

They were a Western Germanic Tribal conederation.

OriginsModern scholars of the Migration Period are in agreement that the Frankish identity emerged at the first half of the 3rd century out of various earlier, smaller Germanic groups, including the Salii, Sicambri, Chamavi, Bructeri, Chatti, Chattuarii, Ampsivarii, Tencteri, Ubii and Batavi, who inhabited the lower Rhine valley between the Zuyder Zee and the river Lahn and extended eastwards as far as the Weser, but were the most densely settled around the IJssel and between the Lippe and the Sieg. The Frankish confederation probably began to coalesce in the 230s.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franks (iknow..I know)

Isn’t science simply one long never-ending argument, anyhow? Someone writes a paper and says this. Someone else writes a response and says it wasn’t this it was that. And yet another person reads the paper and the response and says the original paper got this right and the responder got that wrong, but adds this really isn’t this and that really isn’t that. It’s the other thing entirely. Science is messy; however, eventually the truth prevails. Whatever happened to that guy that first said dinosaurs were birds?

Isn’t science simply one long never-ending argument, anyhow? Someone writes a paper and says this. Someone else writes a response and says it wasn’t this it was that. And yet another person reads the paper and the response and says the original paper got this right and the responder got that wrong, but adds this really isn’t this and that really isn’t that. It’s the other thing entirely. Science is messy; however, eventually the truth prevails. Whatever happened to that guy that first said dinosaurs were birds?

Isn’t science simply one long never-ending argument, anyhow? Someone writes a paper and says this. Someone else writes a response and says it wasn’t this it was that. And yet another person reads the paper and the response and says the original paper got this right and the responder got that wrong, but adds this really isn’t this and that really isn’t that. It’s the other thing entirely. Science is messy; however, eventually the truth prevails. Whatever happened to that guy that first said dinosaurs were birds?